The scent of litchi blossom is spreading all around. The trees are covered in clusters of yellow blossom. In Ishwardi, Pabna, known as the "litchi kingdom", farmers and orchard owners hope for a record litchi harvest this year. Litchi is grown to some extent across the country, but the litchi from here is especially prized.

Farmers said most trees have blossomed, so the yield should be much better this year. With favourable conditions, orchard owners and litchi farmers who depend on the orchards hope to do well financially. Last year, because of the impact of climate change, the litchi yield in Ishwardi suffered a severe setback. With blossom failing to appear, the yield of the Bombai variety in particular fell by 60 per cent, and farmers involved in litchi faced severe financial losses.

Nayan Biswas, an orchard owner in Maniknagar village, said the weather this year is favourable for litchi. Every tree has blossomed enough. Orchard owners suffered losses last year because the yield was poor. This year he hopes orchard owners, farmers and traders will all profit.

Saidul Islam, a litchi farmer of Maniknagar Purbapara village, said that seeing the blossom on tree after tree, they are very hopeful of a bumper crop.

Kitab Mondal, known as Lichu Kitab, a farmer of Mirkamari village in Salimpur union who has won a national award for litchi farming, said Ishwardi's farm economy depends on litchi. These farmers' livelihoods for the whole year depend on income from the orchards. This time the orchards are covered in blossom and there is no fear of a crop failure like last year's. Seeing so much blossom, it seems there will be a bumper crop, he said.

Ishwardi upazila sub-assistant agriculture officer Zahidul Islam said litchi is Ishwardi's main cash crop. Each tree bears from three thousand to 30,000 litchis. This year litchi has been grown on 3,100 hectares in the upazila.

Source: Jagonews24. First published in Bengali on The Agro News.